Feed-water heater



P. SHICKLE.

Feed Water Heater.`

Patented Apfil 19,1881.

Inven 014: @Z'Zfzz N0.,A 240,278Q

Silk/fa Amnesia.- W@

NPETEHS, PHOTO-LITHDGRAPHER, WASHINGTON, D c,

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

FREDERICK SHICKLE, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

FEED-WATER H EATER.-

SPECIFICATION fo'rming part of Letters Patent No. 240,278, dated April 19, 1881.

Application filed January 29, 1881. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FREDERICK SHICKLE, of St. Louis, Missouri, have made a new and useful Improvement in Feed-Tater Heaters, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the annexed drawings, making part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation, half in section, of the improved heater; Fig. 2, a cross-section taken through the heater on the line .r w, Fig. l Fig. 3, a cross-section taken on line yy, Fig. l; and Fig. 4, a vertical section taken through the upper part of the heater.

The same letters denote the same parts.

Feed-water heatersjasusually constructed consist, mainly, of a system of tubes inclosed in a chamber, in the end plates or heads of which the tubes at both ends are fixed. The water circulates through and the steam around the tubes, or vice versa, as desired. In practice this construction is objectionable in that the various portions of the device expand and contract unequally, causing the tubes to work loose in the heads and to leak.

In place of straight tubes, held at both ends in the opposite heads of the heater, arched or U-shaped tubes have been used, both ends of the tubes being held in the same head, the steam circulating through the tubes; or, in place of arched tubes, tubes within tubes have been used, the outer tubes being closed at the top and the steam circulating through the inner tubes and the annular spaces between the inner and outer tubes. These last-named systems are undesirable, because, if the steam is passed through them, the friction is increased, the tubes are small, and the annular spaces still smaller in cross-section. This increases the back-pressurev upon the engine. On the other hand, if water is passed through the tubes and the steam around theV tubes, dirt is apt to deposit in the tubes, and the tubes, from their construction, cannot be easily reached for cleaning, removal, or repair.

To overcome these difficulties, and to provide an efficient heater, readily made and easily managed and cleaned and repaired, and o-ne in which the shell of the heater and the tubes can expandand contract independently of each other, is the aim ofthe present improvement.

Referring to the drawings, A represents the improved heater having the hollow base B, the inclosed chamber Orpheater proper, C, the system of tubes D, the water -inlet E, the water-outlet F, 'the steam-,inlet G, and the 'steam-outlet H. The tubes D, at their lower ends, are passed through and held in the plate I, which separates the chamber b in the lbase B from the heating-chamber C. The shell c of the latter is attached to the base B. The tubes D, at their upper ends, open into a chamber, J, the tube ends being fixedV in the shell j of the chamber. The latter, J is thereby supported by the tubes D, and being fastened to the tubes, and at the same time entirely free of the shell c, it can move with the tubes as the latter are contracted and expanded by the varying temperatures incident to the using of 7o the heater. v

The course of the water and steam currents is as follows: The Water enters the chamber b in the base B, passes thence through the tubes D into the chamber J, and thence out through the tube F. The steam enters the heating-chamber O at Gr, and after circulating around and between the tubes D, and around the chamber J, passes out of the chamber C at H.

The tube F, at its lower end, is xed in the shell of the chamber J but it is held loosely in the shell of the chamber C, passing through a stuffing-box, K, therein. This enables the tubes D D, chamber J, and tube F to move independently of the shell c, as these various parts are differently expanded by diferent temperatures, and so as not to exert a strain upon each other-that is, the shell c can be expanded by reason of the hot steam, and the tubes D and chamber J contracted by reason of the cold water, as indicated by the dotted lines in Fig. 4, Without either part tending to disrupt the other, as the tube F is free to move in the stuffing-box K, or the shell and stuffing-box upon the tube F, as the case may be. The water is preferably iltered through a filter-bed, L, before discharging it from the heater.

A blow-off pipe, M, leads from near the top IOO of the chamber J downward, through one of the tubes D, into the chamber b, and thence out to the outer side ot' the base, as shown. By means ot' this pipe any scum collecting upon the water in the chamber J may be carried away from the heater.

The bottom b ofthe chamber bis made concave, and at the lowest point therein is a blowoff pipe, N, for the purpose of discharging such foreign matter as may collect in the chamber b. The latter is made comparatively deep, to promote the settling of the dirt therein.

The filter-bed L is suitably heldin place by means of the perforated plates Z Z, which, in turn,'are conned by means of suitable supports and projections, Z l', properly in place.

The pipe M may also be used for conducting the feed-water from the chamber J to any desired point; also, a tube, such as the tube D', may lead from the chamber J (preferably from above the filter-bed L when the latter is used) downward through the chamber C, nearly to the bottom ofthe latter, and thence be carried out through the shell c, as seen in Figs. 'l and 2, and the feed-water may be taken from the chamber J through it. This tube D may be used in conjunction with the pipe F, or'either can be used singly, as `desired.

I claim- 1. The herein-described feed-Water heater, consisting of the chamber b, the tubes D, chamber J, tube F, fixed in the shell of the chamber J and held loosely in the shell ot' the chamber C, inlets E G, and outlet H, substantially as described.

2. The combination of the chamber C, tubes D, chamber J, and pipe F, the latter being held firmly in the chamber J and loosely in the chamber C, substantially as described.

3. The combination of the chamber b, tubes D, chamber J, and blow-off tube M, substantially as described.

FREDERICK SHIGKLE.

Witnesses:

CHAs. D. MooDY, SAML. S. BOYD. 

